Louis van Gaal hopes to lead Manchester United to UCL glory

For the first time since 1995-96, United are not competing in the Champions League after only finishing seventh in England last season but Van Gaal said he has an ambitious blueprint to return United to the summit of the continental game.

The 63-year-old was a Champions League winner as Ajax manager in 1995 and took Bayern Munich to the final in 2010, but he stressed that patience will be required to enjoy similar success at Old Trafford.

He said in a news conference: "That process needs time and we are building up a new team. I hope that we shall succeed and that we are this year in the top four because the Champions League suits a club like Manchester United.

"Then maybe the next step is to be the champion and then the next step is to be winner of the Champions League, but that takes time.

"With Ajax, I went there in 1991 and we won the UEFA Cup in my first year. My second year we won only the [Dutch] cup. The third year we won everything."

Van Gaal is yet to win a competitive game as United manager but feels nothing has changed since he was lauded during preseason, when they recorded six victories from as many attempts.

He added: "I have read the articles also and I was the king in the United States and now I am not a king any more. I am the same Louis van Gaal with the same record and the same philosophy and I am very confident that I shall succeed here.

"I have said already that I need time: it takes always three months that players are used to the other philosophy because it is not so easy [to adapt]."